Ibrahim Khalil Khan
Encyclopedia
Ibrahim Khalil khan Javanshir (1730–1806) was the Azeri
Turkic
khan
of Karabakh
from the Javanshir
family, who succeeded his father Panah-Ali khan Javanshir as the ruler of Karabakh khanate
.
In 1795 the Shah of Persia, Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar
, attacked the region to end its feudal fragmentation and restore it to the old Safavid State in Iran. The khans of Ganja
, Nakhjavan
, and Erevan
submitted, but Ibrahim Khan did not. He was defeated in battle and retreated to the fortress of Shusha
. After a prolonged siege, Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar failed to take the fortress and left the region. In a verbal truce, Ibrahim Khan acknowledged Qajar supremacy and was permitted to continue to rule as Khan of Karabakh.
In 1796, following Agha Mohammad Khan's return to Persia, Catherine the Great
ordered her army to conquer the Caucasus. Ibrahim began negotiating with the Russian commanders and agreed to cooperate with them in exchange for maintaining his rule in Karabakh. Soon after Catherine the Great died, her successor, Paul
, abandoned her plans for the region and recalled the Russian troops.
In 1797, Aga Mohammad Khan, angered by the betrayal of Ibrahim Khalil Khan and other khans in the Caucasus, attacked and captured Shusha. Agha Mohammad Khan was assassinated in Shusha five days after its capture. Ibrahim, who had fled to his in-laws in Dagestan
, then returned to Shusha and gave Aga Mohammad Khan an honourable burial. In order to retain his position and ensure peaceful relations with Persia, he gave one of his daughters to be a wife of the new shah, Fat′h Ali Shah Qajar.
During the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813), General Tsitsianov
promised that Russia would recognize Ibrahim Khan as khan and agreed that Ibrahim's elder son would succeed his father, and the Kurekchay Treaty
between Russia and Karabakh was signed on May 14, 1805. Tsitsianov then occupied Shusha and left a Russian garrison stationed there. Tsitsianov's death in 1806 and the breakup of the Russian offensive persuaded Ibrahim Khalil Khan to switch allegiance and ask the shah for aid in ousting the Russian garrison. As the Persian army approached Shusha, Ibrahim Khan left the fortress and camped outside. On 2 June 1806, the Russians, instigated by Ibrahim Khalil Khan's grandson and fearful of their own vulnerability, attacked the camp and killed Ibrahim Khan, one of his wives, a daughter, and his youngest son. To gain support from the local Muslims, the Russians appointed a son of Ibrahim Khalil, Mahdi Qulu Khan, as khan of Karabakh.
Azerbaijani people
The Azerbaijanis are a Turkic-speaking people living mainly in northwestern Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan, as well as in the neighbourhood states, Georgia, Russia and formerly Armenia. Commonly referred to as Azeris or Azerbaijani Turks , they also live in a wider area from the Caucasus to...
Turkic
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
of Karabakh
Karabakh
The Karabakh horse , also known as Karabakh, is a mountain-steppe racing and riding horse. It is named after the geographic region where the horse was originally developed, Karabakh in the Southern Caucasus, an area that is de jure part of Azerbaijan but the highland part of which is currently...
from the Javanshir
Javanshir clan
The Javanshir clan was a Turkic clan in Karabakh, which belonged to the Afshar tribe in turn a branch of Oghuz Turks. In the mid-18th century, after the death of Nader Shah, the Javanshir tribe seized power of the region. Panah Khan, the chief of the Javanshir tribe, established the Karabakh...
family, who succeeded his father Panah-Ali khan Javanshir as the ruler of Karabakh khanate
Karabakh khanate
The Karabakh khanate was a semi-independent khanate on the territories of modern Azerbaijan and Armenia established in about 1750 under Persian suzerainty in Karabakh and adjacent areas. The Karabakh khanate existed until 1805, when the Russian Empire gained control over it from Persia...
.
In 1795 the Shah of Persia, Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar
Mohammad Khan Qajar
Agha Muḥammad Khān Qājār was the chief of the Qajar tribe, succeeding his father Mohammad Hassan Khan, who was killed on the orders of Adil Shah. He became the Emperor/Shah of Persia in 1794 and established the Qajar dynasty...
, attacked the region to end its feudal fragmentation and restore it to the old Safavid State in Iran. The khans of Ganja
Ganja Khanate
The Ganja khanate was a Muslim principality mostly under the dominion of Persia that existed in the territory of Azerbaijan in 1747-1805. The principality was ruled by the dynasty of Ziyadoglu , which had ruled Ganja as governors under Nadir Shah and was of Qajar extraction...
, Nakhjavan
Nakhchivan khanate
The Khanate of Nakhichevan was a feudal state in the southern Caucasus, nominally subordinate to the Persian Shahs, and named after its chief settlement, the town of Nakhichevan....
, and Erevan
Erivan Khanate
The Khanate of Erivan , was an administrative territory that was established Safavid Persia in the early 17th century. It covered an area of roughly 7,500 square miles, and corresponded to most of present-day central Armenia, most of the Iğdır Province of present-day Turkey, and the Sharur and...
submitted, but Ibrahim Khan did not. He was defeated in battle and retreated to the fortress of Shusha
Shusha
Shusha , also known as Shushi is a town in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh in the South Caucasus. It has been under the control of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic since its capture in 1992 during the Nagorno-Karabakh War...
. After a prolonged siege, Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar failed to take the fortress and left the region. In a verbal truce, Ibrahim Khan acknowledged Qajar supremacy and was permitted to continue to rule as Khan of Karabakh.
In 1796, following Agha Mohammad Khan's return to Persia, Catherine the Great
Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great , Empress of Russia, was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg...
ordered her army to conquer the Caucasus. Ibrahim began negotiating with the Russian commanders and agreed to cooperate with them in exchange for maintaining his rule in Karabakh. Soon after Catherine the Great died, her successor, Paul
Paul I of Russia
Paul I was the Emperor of Russia between 1796 and 1801. He also was the 72nd Prince and Grand Master of the Order of Malta .-Childhood:...
, abandoned her plans for the region and recalled the Russian troops.
In 1797, Aga Mohammad Khan, angered by the betrayal of Ibrahim Khalil Khan and other khans in the Caucasus, attacked and captured Shusha. Agha Mohammad Khan was assassinated in Shusha five days after its capture. Ibrahim, who had fled to his in-laws in Dagestan
Dagestan
The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...
, then returned to Shusha and gave Aga Mohammad Khan an honourable burial. In order to retain his position and ensure peaceful relations with Persia, he gave one of his daughters to be a wife of the new shah, Fat′h Ali Shah Qajar.
During the Russo-Persian War (1804–1813), General Tsitsianov
Pavel Tsitsianov
Pavel Dmitriyevich Tsitsianov was the Georgian Imperial Russian military commander and infantry general from 1804. A member of the noble Georgian family Tsitsishvili , Tsitsianov participated in suppression of the Kościuszko Uprising and in the Russo-Persian War...
promised that Russia would recognize Ibrahim Khan as khan and agreed that Ibrahim's elder son would succeed his father, and the Kurekchay Treaty
Kurekchay Treaty
The Treaty of Kurakchay, also known as the Russo-Karabakhi treaty of May 14, 1805, was a treaty signed between the Russian military commander in the Caucasus Pavel Tsitsianov on behalf of Tsar Alexander I of Russia and Ibrahim Khalil Khan of the Karabakh khanate, which made the khanate a...
between Russia and Karabakh was signed on May 14, 1805. Tsitsianov then occupied Shusha and left a Russian garrison stationed there. Tsitsianov's death in 1806 and the breakup of the Russian offensive persuaded Ibrahim Khalil Khan to switch allegiance and ask the shah for aid in ousting the Russian garrison. As the Persian army approached Shusha, Ibrahim Khan left the fortress and camped outside. On 2 June 1806, the Russians, instigated by Ibrahim Khalil Khan's grandson and fearful of their own vulnerability, attacked the camp and killed Ibrahim Khan, one of his wives, a daughter, and his youngest son. To gain support from the local Muslims, the Russians appointed a son of Ibrahim Khalil, Mahdi Qulu Khan, as khan of Karabakh.
See also
- Avshar Turkmen
- Afsharid dynastyAfsharid dynastyThe Afsharids were members of an Iranian dynasty of Turkmen origin from Khorasan who ruled Persia in the 18th century. The dynasty was founded in 1736 by the military commander Nader Shah who deposed the last member of the Safavid dynasty and proclaimed himself King of Iran. During Nader's reign,...
- Caucasian AlbaniaCaucasian AlbaniaAlbania is a name for the historical region of the eastern Caucasus, that existed on the territory of present-day republic of...
- History of AzerbaijanHistory of AzerbaijanAzerbaijan or Azarbaijan is a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. It's bounded by Caspian Sea to the east, Russia's Daghestan region to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia and Turkey to the southwest, and Iran to the south...